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Boulder County DA says Mead asked him to remove cop from Brady list

List includes 13 current, former officers with findings of untruthfulness or misconduct

By Amelia Arvesen

Staff Writer

Posted:
02/27/2018 05:42:19 PM MST

Updated:
02/27/2018 10:56:59 PM MST

Ismael Aldana hugs his brother Vinny Aldana after being sworn in as Mead's first police officer on March 13, 2017. Aldana previously worked as a Boulder County sheriff s deputy, but resigned following an internal investigation over issues of truthfulness, which landed him on the Boulder County district attorney's so-called Brady list. (Lewis Geyer / Staff Photographer)

Shortly after Mead hired its first police officer in early 2017, town officials asked Boulder County District Attorney Stan Garnett if he could rescind a letter prepared by his office disclosing credibility issues about the former deputy, the prosecutor confirmed Tuesday.

Garnett, who is stepping down as DA and leaves office Wednesday, said he declined the request to remove the so-called "Brady letter" — designed to be turned over to defense attorneys — from his office's files.

After refusing for weeks to discuss the hiring of Officer Ismael Aldana, Town Attorney Rick Samson acknowledged in a statement Tuesday that town leaders knew about Aldana's past as a Boulder County sheriff's deputy when they hired him, and have since temporarily promoted him to sergeant while they search for a new police chief.

Aldana could not be reached for comment Tuesday through his attorney David Goddard, of Denver's Bruno, Colin & Lowe. They both previously declined to discuss the Brady letter.

Mead hired Aldana in 2014 as the town's code enforcement officer after he resigned from the Boulder County Sheriff's Office at the close of an internal investigation into his off-duty travel.

The former deputy was investigated over allegations he lied to his supervisors about why he was taking time off during a significant narcotics investigation, and after federal agents in Chicago pulled him off a flight to Las Vegas when $70,000 in cash was discovered in his luggage. He was traveling at the time with a suspected drug trafficker, according to Boulder sheriff's records.

That probe did not result in criminal charges, but it landed Aldana on the Boulder DA's Brady list, a roster that includes at least 13 current and former officers in Boulder County who have findings of untruthfulness or misconduct on their records.

Attorneys say Brady letters can greatly impact officers' credibility in court when their contents are used by the defense during jury trials. For example, Garnett has not called any Brady officers to testify witnesses in court, and most officers with such letters move on to other careers.

'It would raise concerns'

While Aldana was working as code enforcement officer, he expressed a desire in becoming Mead's first police officer when the town began the process of starting its first police department in mid-2016, Samson said.

The town's consideration of Aldana raised red flags for at least one Mead resident, a former police officer. Records obtained by the Times-Call show Bruce Vaughan sent an email on Sept. 13, 2016, to the then-town manager with concerns about Aldana's qualifications.

"I do not believe that appointing the current code enforcement officer to the position of police officer is in the best interest of the Town of Mead and its new Police Department," he wrote. "If a proper background would be conducted I believe that it would raise concerns."

Vaughan confirmed Tuesday that his warning was related to Aldana's Brady letter, but he declined to comment further.

'Honor and pride'

Once Aldana was hired, Garnett said he was asked to explain to Mead officials the purpose of the Brady letter, which he told the town's leaders he would not rescind. He said he did not weigh in on whether or not the town should hire Aldana as a police officer.

"Obviously the Brady letter came from my office, but Mead is in Weld County, so how that will be handled will be a matter for the Weld County DA , since that's where he would be asked to testify," Garnett said.

Weld Count District Attorney Michael Rourke previously said he does not tell police chiefs what to do about officers with Brady letters, but acknowledged there are some who remain employed in his jurisdiction that he won't put on the witness stand.

The Firestone Police Department conducted the background investigation of Aldana, Chief David Montgomery said. He did not divulge what it uncovered.

Samson said the investigation included a psychological profile and confirmed that Aldana was Colorado Peace Officer and Standards Training certified. He also said it included "all facts surrounding his resignation" from the sheriff's office and a "recommendation that Mr. Aldana be hired as a police officer."

"After the resignation of Police Chief Maudlin earlier this month, Officer Aldana was temporarily promoted to the rank of sergeant to handle administrative duties as well as his normal duties as a police officer," Samson said in the statement. "Officer Aldana continues to serve the Mead community with honor and pride each day."

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